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January 26, 1969 (vol. 79, iss. 98)
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Image 1

By RON LANDSMAN
The controversy over the literary college's
language and distribution requirements
appears headed for its climax this week.
At a mass meeting tomorrow night at 8
p.m. in the Union Assembly Hall, students
will vote whether to take action against the
requirements.
Proposed action rangers from a disruptive
sit-in in theoffice of literary college Dean
William Hays to.,waiting for faculty action,
which may come as early as next week.
On Thursday the college faculty meets
to consider changing the language require-
ment and whether to open their meetings.
',Tomorrow's mass meeting follows months
of petitioning and organizing by Radical
F Caucus and Student Government Council.
The meeting was first suggested by the
caucus on Jan. 14, the day the college fac-
ulty abruptly adjourned their meeting after
some 25 students, mostly from the caucus,
refused to leave.
In reaction to the faculty move, caucus
members decided to call the mass meeting
and urge the disruptive sit-in.
The next day, the executive committee of
the college called for a special open forum

languag
the following Tuesday to discuss the lan-
guage requirement.
Hays and the executive committee said
they were not reacting to the threat of the
sit-in when they called for the forum, al-
though caucus leaders were skeptical.
Radical Caucus leaders initially decided
not to attend the meeting, charging that it
side-stepped the issue of open meetings.
They changed their minds the next day,
though, but added the proviso that some
faculty member must move that the meet-
ing be made a regular faculty meeting with
decision-making power.
The forum vent on as scheduled and the
demand was not met.
The day after the announcement of the
forum, SGC voted to back the caucus ini-
tiated mass meeting. However, an SGC
resolution prohibiting disruptive sit-ins
barred their further support of the caucus.
Hays met that Friday with leaders of the
caucus and SGC to discuss the coming for-
um, but the meeting was rather inconclusive
and the students said they were dissatisfied.
The forum last Tuesday to discuss the
language requirement was quite a surprise.
Over 1000 students and faculty turned out

controversy

for the meeting, forcing it to be moved from
Natural Science Aud. to Hill Aud.
However, the meeting was inconclusive.
Both students and faculty spoke on both
sides of the issue.
After the meeting Hays announced a spe-
cial faculty meeting for this Thursday to
discuss only open meetings.
Student leaders criticized him for limiting
the issue, and Hays later reworded his pro-
posal, adding 'the question of language re-
quirements to the agenda.
Hays' move was not without effect on the
students' action. At their meeting that night,
caucus members decided to move the begin-
ning of the sit-in back one day, to noon
Wednesday.
Last Wednesday, the day after the forum,
Hays invited six students to the faculty
meeting.
Four students-Michael McLaughlin and
Bruce Levine of the caucus, and Michael
Koeneke and Bob Neff of SGC-immed-
iately said they would not attend a closed
meeting. To do so, they said, would tacitly
imply the faculty had a right to such closed'
meetings.
On Thursday Hays suggested a compro-

mise. In an open letter to the student body.
Hays called for elected, voting student rep-
resentatives on the curriculum committee
and came out in favor of open meetings.
He also reviewed the work done by the
curriculum committee on the language re-
quirement and asked for patience until
their report comes out in March.
The move forced the caucus to shift its
position. Caucus leaders indicated they
would probably move the sit-in from Wed-
nesday to Thursday and that it would not
be disruptive-pending what the faculty did
at their meeting.
That same night, SGC defeated an at-
tempt to suspend their rules barring disrup-
tive sit-ins, which would have left them free
to support the caucus' position. The move
was not related to Hays' letter.
The press of events in the last two weeks
tends to obscure what happened the previous
year. As long ago as September, 1967, Prof.
Roy Pierce of the political science depart-
ment, then chairman of the curriculum com-
mittee, cited revision of the language re-
quirement as one of the major goals for the
year.
It was later that academic year that the

nears
committee began negotiating with the In-
stitute for Social Research for a survey of
student views on the requirement-a survey
that was not conducted until this semester.
Other important issues kept the commit-
tee from delving deeply into the require-
ment this year. But late last year the cim-
mittee told Hays their report would be
ready by the March faculty meeting, and
it is a commitment current committee chair-
man Prof. James Gindin says he can meet.
But by last semester, students were on the
move, too. In September the caucus began
its petition drive against both the language
and distribution requirements which was to
net some 3,500 signatures.
SGC started its own petition drive a short
time later.
In late November more than 150 students
joined in presenting the petitions to Hays.
At the time Hays said little could be done
about the language requirement until the
committee acted.
When pressed about open meetings, he
said it was the faculty's decision.
Hays later turned the petitions over to
Gindin, who i72 turn informed the faculty

crisis
officially of the petitions at the Dec. 2
meeting.
The student demand at the time was for
a decision by the end of January, although
no specific action was threatened if the
demand wasn't met.
The issue of open meetmngs was not ig-
nored either. In November, Prof. E. Lowell
Kelly of the psychology department moved
that meetings be open.
A similar motion in the 1967-68 academic
year had been defeated in an informal vote.
Kelly said he thinks the chances of pass-
age now are overwhelming. "The mood of
the faculty has changed a lot in the last
year," he said. He cited the opening of
Senate Assembly and Regents meetings as
indicators of possible success.
His motion has some provisions that
might upset students, though, besides the
right to go into executive session. Visitors
would be confined to specific areas of the
room to facilitate ,vote tabulations and
would not have the "privilege of the floor,"
The issues now before the faculty are very
clear, but what they and the students will
do is not. Thursday should be the decisive
day.

i

An Editorial,

. .

P

Sir itau

AT FIRST
changed

GLANCE the University
significantly since the

~Iaiti

appears
massive

to have
demon-

strations of the Student Power Movement of late 1966.
Yet the ,aura of change is illusory. For while many
of the onerous restrictions on student behavior have
been removed, these regulations had only tangential
relevance to education.
This week,/the thrust of student activism, which
forced the elimination of these restrictions, turns for
the first time to academic problems.
Literary college students will meet tomorrow night
in the Union Assembly Hall to consider possible action
in light of the faculty's failure to abolish language
and distribution requirements.
While widespread student support has been galvan-
ized around these twin issues, the eventual goals of the
movement remain ill-defined.
MAKE this controversy as productive as possible
we recommend that tomorrow's mass meeting ac-
cept the following demands:
Immediate abolition of the current language re-
quirement;
* Immediate student voting equality on the literary
college curriculum committee;
* Immediate stepsntoward promptly givingstu-
dents voting equality in all college-wide curriculum
decisions.
Intensive scrutiny has made clear both wide-
spread student dissatisfaction with the language re-
4uirement and its general inability to significantly pro-
mote the learning of a foreign language.
The problem is largely tht coercion cannot imbue
students with the dedication necessary to tolerate the
drudgery of learning a new vocabulary and gramma-
tical system by rote.
As long as many students do not see the personal
relevance of language study, this coercion can only be
counter-productive and may alienate them from the
rest of the learning process as well.
BUT EVEN if the language requirement is abolished,
little long-term good can result unless the outmoded
and patronizing decision-making structure of the col-
lege is altered as well.
While a change in the curriculum committee is
necessary, it is not nearly sufficient. For the power
of a committee is only to' recommend, rather than make
final decisions. In the future, students must have full
equality with faculty in making all college-wide curri-
culum decisions.
It is obvious that students are as affected by and
concerned with the curriculum as faculty members
themselves. It has also become clear that students can
only suffer academically when given merely a passive
role in academic decision-making.
Academic decision-making has traditionally been
calculated in decades rather than months or years. Joint
student-faculty control over curriculum matters would
serve as an effective catalyst for the University to
thoroughly re-examine its educational philosophy and
methods.'
Admittedly, it will be difficult to arrive at the ap-
propriate and representative method for transferring
final authority in all curriculum matters to a joint
student-faculty group.
But the difficulty of making this structural change
cannot be used as an excuse to deny its necessity or
delay its implementation.
And the first task of this new student-faculty group
must be the immediate abolition or restructuring of the
now unworkable distribution requirements.
T'1 PROVIDE for the broadest amount of faculty sup-
port and to prevent undue student divisiveness, we
believe the students should allow the faculty one more
chance to take appropriate action.
Under the literary college bylaws, a motion to end
the current language requirements and change decision-
making policies can be brought up at Thursday's fa-
culty meeting and a vote on the matter can be taken at
the regular faculty meeting the following Monday.
Any disruptive action before Thursday's meeting
could seriously block the easiest road the students have
for winning their demands-immediate faculty action.
And if the faculty fails to respond favorably on
Thursday, further action can be considered at another

By RON LANDSMAN
A new proposal for abolition of
the language requirement, with'
credit given for proficiency, has
won the approval of Dean William"
Hays of the literary college.
The latest proposal, made by
Prof. Peter A. S. Smith of the
chemistry department, would abol-
ish the requirement. However, the:
120-hour requirement for the
bachelor of arts degree would be
reduced to 110 hours for students
who enter the college with pro-
ficiency in a foreign language.1 i
In addition, a student who took
University courses to attain pro-
ficiency could receive either the'

others now being seriously con-;
sidered by the committee. These
include:
-complete abolition of the re-
quirement;
-pass-fail for all elementary lan-
guage courses;
--institution of a two track sys-
tem, speaking and reading;
-substituting a history or culture
oriented course for language:
-increasing the humanities re-
quirement: and
-a "contact" requirement, com-
prising two years of high school or
one year of a college level lan-
guage course to insure the student,

has contact with other cultures. versity. especially French and By STEVE NISSEN
Supporters see merit in all of Spanish. which carry the brunt of University President Robben W. Fleming. last night
these proposals. They find dif- required language courses, would defended the performance of "Dionysus in 69" but warned
ferent advantages in each for the rather not teach first-year lan-
college and the student. guage. It is a task they think be- that "the University is not a sanctuary, therefore the law
The advantages of Smith's pro- longs in the high schools or even applies on campus as well as in the community."
posal include positive encourage- junior high and elementary Last night, the play was performed uninterrupted in
ment for language proficiency., schools. Detroit, with police in attendance.
Unlike the current requirement, If the University granted credit "It conformed to the laws of morality," a police spokes-
which is negative in structure, for language proficiency, high
this one imposes no penalty on schools would be more encouraged man said. The actors kept their clothes on." He would not
those students who omit language, to have their students learn lan- elaborate on the extent to which the actors "kept their
but gives a positive advantage to guages. clothes on."
those who do. A similar consideration-making The play, a part of the Creative Arts Festival, is scheduled
One effect of the proposal would language proficiency an entrance to perform tonight and tomorrow at 8:30 p.m. in the Union
be felt in the high schools. The requirement-has been generally Ballroom.
language departments at the Uni- See MAYS, Page 10 "The human body is hardly obscene," Fleming explained
in a prepared statement. "Thus nudity-in and of itself--is
Odifficult to describe as ob---
"~~*~ scene."
ib ksrentstrie "The question is one of the pon- an ac
e athin which nudity occurs,

ten hour credit or credit for as }.J N A NTH lT Vf}T

many language courses as he took,
whichever was larger.
Hays said he found the pro-
posal "novel and rather accept-
able."
"I think it is likely that it would
get strong support from the fac-
ulty," he said. "It is the type of
proposal that would attract the
faculty."
However, Hays qualified his
comments, explaining that he did
not speak for the faculty or the
curriculum committee and could
not predict what. they would fi-
nally decide.
Smith's proposal, which Hays'

1.1 1t' , ±L VI..mJ A3kJ /V A.
En min Coit

By MICHAEL THORYN of a tenants union and a rent
Engineering Council is support- strike."
ing the rent strike proposed by There are 4,400 students in the
the Ann Arbor Tenants Union. engineering college and DeFouw
said he'is confident that "people
Council president Eugene De- will begin to swing our way."
Fouw has set up a committee "to "Many engineers were holding
make engineers aware of the goals back, waiting to see if the council
of the union," would support the rent strike
DeFouw's action followed a idea," he added.
unanimous vote of the council The decision to organize a rent

received Friday, is by no means Thursday night to
the first. His suggestion joins six actively participate

"support and strike was reached last December
in formation after students met several times

FEDERAL PROGRAM
Aid cut to hit class of '73

By NADINE COHODAS
A year ago an in-state stu-
dent from a low income family
would have had a good chance
to attend the University, even
if his parents could not pay the
entire cost of his education.
Through the three-year-old
program of Educational Oppor-
tunity Grants (EOG), the Uni-
versity was able to use federal
funds to assist some 400 first-
year students last year.
However, Congressional cut-
backs in appropriations may
force the University to limit aid
to help only one-fourth as many
incoming students with federal
money in 1969-70.
The EOG program is designed
to assist students from low-in-
come families. Any recipient is
automatically entitled to renew
his grant at the end of his fresh-
man, sophomore and junior
crnrc rh1c. the, n An.cP onin

Consequently, even with the
carryover, the total amount
available for the grants next
year will be $3 million less than
last year's expenditure.
"At a time when we have the
greatest demand we have less
money," says University Finan-
cial Aids Director Ronald
Brown. Because much of the
federal money will be used to
renew scholarships of sopho-
mores and juniors, Browns says
freshmen will get the "short
end of the stick."
"If Congress tails to restore
the cuts," he says, "the Univer-
sity will find itself making ini-
tial awards to something be-
tween 86-115 students where
last year 412 received initial
aid.
Last year the University was
allotted $389,425 from the pro-
gram, which was divided among
001 cfirlnnt-c' Almnszf half cof

"It is unfortunate that we
should have to'cut back at the
very time we should be trying
to push forward," Brown ad-
mits. "Institutions finally are
realizing the promise in pro-
grams geared to recruiting stu-
dents from low-income fam-
ilies."
Not only will- there be less
money allotted next year, but
1969-70 is the first year colleges
and universities in the program
can use three per cent of their
allotment for administrative
costs.
"It is a rare university indeed
that could not use the money,"
Brown says. This p ro b a b I y
means another reduction in the
amount available for scholar-
ships.
On the national level, the ef-
fect of the cutback is devesta-
ting. Where grants were given
to 144.600l freshmn las1t near

with Student Housing Association
(SHA) officials to discuss rental!
problems.
The union's strike steering' com-
mittee lists reasons for the strike,
as "unusually high rents, sub-
standard h o u s i n g, inequitable
leases, excessive damage deposits,!
and indifferent responses to com-1
plaints and other serious prob-
tlems."
The union hopes to negotiate a
significant reduction in rent, and
leases whose duration would be
determined by the lessee.
Peter Denton, Grad, a member
of the union's strike steering com-
mittee, said the strike will seek
success through the force of num f
bers and within the legal system.A
The strike is scheduled to start
when 2,000 students sign pledges
to withhold rent and rafrain from
signing new leases with struck
members of the Ann Arbor Prop-
erty Managers Association.
The steering committe hopes to
begin the strike in February.
Nancy Holmstrom, Grad, a
member of the steering committee,
said the Engineering Council ac-
tion "sho.ws the rent strike is a
broadly supported movement with}
persons of all interests and po-
litical concerns."
She said between 500 and 7501
persons have a1r e a d y, signed
pledges.
James Meininger, Grad, was se-I
lected by DeFouw to head the
committee in the engineering col-
lege.Current plans all for a coin-
mittee member to distribute in-
formation to interested students
in the Engineering Council office.
Tentative plans have been made
to distribute strike information in
classrooms. "We'd like to saturate

6uui c L of a weeK -ong conroversy ,
which began Monday when Ann
Arbor Detective Lt. Eugene Stau-
The complete text of
President Fleming's
statement appears on
Page 10.
denmaier told University Activi-
ties Center President Dan Mc-
Creath that police action may re-
sult from the showing of the play.
Several members of the Union
Board of Directors, have said their
endorsement of the play is con-
ditional upon the full clothing of
See FLEMING, Page 6

JL

Although he defended the con-
troversial play, Fleming said, "It
is unfair of us to criticize the local
prosecutor and police because of a
law enforcement problem they did! d i ie t
not seek." i
"I may or may not agree with
their ultimate judgment, but I do
not propose to criticize them for MADRID W) - The police of
fulfilling their obligation under Spain began a nationwide hunt
the law," he said. for political and university dissi-
"Dionysus in 69" has been the dents yesterday under special
bj chpt f n upk..ns rninpa powers of a state of emergency.

Arrests began -within hours af-
ter Gen. Francisco Franco signed
a decree signaling the start of a
campaign to root out alleged sub-
version in the universities, the
labor movement, politics end
among Basque separatists.
Police sources said more than
100 persons had been detained by
late afternoon and that first de-
tentions came from among radical
leaders whose names had been put
on a most wanted list weeks ago.
For those prisoners, the Franco
regime promised "the full weight
of the law." This could mean many
years in prison.
Police powers during the three-
month emergency will be broad.
The decree permits police to
search without a warrant, hold
prisoners indefinitely without
charges, exile Spaniards from
their home provinces and ban free
speech and free association.
The campuses of Spain's two
largest universities 'were deserted.
The University of Madrid, with
40,000 students,and the University
of Barcelona, with 28,000 students
were closed by authorities until
further,, notice.
In one last hurrah before bur-
rowing deeper underground, Com-
munists littered the University of
11f.,,aiAid ,'nt, rbsiin th4niioht